Production of pattern effects upon textile goods



Patented Dec. 17, .1929

UNITED STATES GEORGES HEBERLEIN,OF WATTWIL,

SWITZERLAND, ASSIGNOR TO HEBERLEIN PAT- ENT CORPORATION, OF NEW YORK,NHYQ, A CORPORATION OF .NEW YORK PRODUCTION OF PATTERN EFFECTS UPONTEXTILE GOODS No Drawing. Application filed November 11,1926, Serial No.147,850, and in Germany March 27, 1926.

This invention relates to the production of pattern effects upon textilegoods, and more particularly to a process for the production of patterneffects upon goods made of or containing vegetable fibres, by the actionof swelling agents upon the goods, Without the necessity of applyingsuch agents by printing With same upon only localized portions of thegoods to produce the pattern effects, or of printing upon only localizedportions of the goods with a suitable resist composition .beforesubjecting the goods to the swelling agent.

The objects of the invention are to obtain durable pattern effects inconnection with the use of swelling agents in a quick and gnoreeconomical manner, and to obtain improved color or tone variations insuch pattern effects.

The invention consists in the novel features of the method which areherein described according to the preferred manner of carrying out same,and the invention will be more particularly pointed out in the appendedclaims.

It is known that cottonand other vegetable fabrics may be modified bymeans of the action of strong alkalis, certain mineral acids and otherswelling agents which chemically structurally change one or more naturalcharacteristics of such fabrics, and that advantage may be taken of thismodification of such fabrics by swelling agents to produce patterneffects upon the fabrics by localizing the action of the swelling agentson such fabrics to various portions thereof. Many such swelling agentsand different processes for producing durablepattern effects uponfabricsby localizing the actior of such swelling agents upon the fabrics, arenow well known. For example. the following United States Letters Patentdisclose various swelling agents and processes that may be used forproducing pattern effects:

Patents #0 Georges Heberleia Patent No. 1.141.872 granted June 1, 1915;

Patent No. 1.144.635. granted June 29. 1915;

Patent No. 1.201.901. granted Oct. 17. 1910; Patent No. 1,288,884,granted Dec.

Patents to Eduard H eberlein Patent No. 1,265,082, granted May 7, 1918;Patent No. 1,439,517, granted Dec. 19, 1922; Patent No. 1,439,5l9,granted Dec. 19, 1922.

According to these processes as heretofore practiced one may apply theswelling agent to the fabric by printing it directly upoirthc fabricaccording to the pattern to be produced, or else one may proceed in amore practical way by printing a resist upon the fabric, andsubsequentlysubjecting the fabric to the swelling agents which willattack the portions not covered by the resist printing.

According to the present invention the resist printing may be replacedby the sim' pler means of localized pressing of the fabric according tothe pattern to be produced, by substantial pressure at elevatedtemperatures (i. 0., of at least- 100 C. of the pressure surface) uponsuch portions of the fabric as are not to be modified or fully modifiedby the swelling agent, the fabric being subjected to a swelling agentafter the localized pres sure has been applied. It has been found thatsuch portions of the fabric as have been subjected to this pressure athigh temperature are either not affected at all by the subsequentlyapplied swelling agent or are not affected to the extent that theunpressed portions are affected: so that by the simple method of firstimprinting the pattern upon the fabric under substantial pressure athigh temperature and then subjecting the fabric to the swelling agent,durable or permanent finish pattern effects are produced.

For example, if a cotton fabric is caused to run under pressure througha goffering calender exerting a pressure of approximately 700 pounds persquare inch the imprint cylinder of which is heated to 140 (1., thereoccu -1s at the pressed spots. in consequence of the (fittt of thepressure and the heat, such a change in the state of the fabric that theswelling agent or agents which are subsequently applied either do notact on such pressed portions at all, or act only to a much slighterextent than upon the enlarged or unpressed portions of the fabric,according to the duration of the action of such swelling agents upon thefabric. Thus for example one may emboss the desired pattern upon thefabric by the heated roller and then subject the fabric to any wellknown swelling agent for vegetable fibres, such for example as sulphuricacid,.phosphoric acid,

nitric acid, caustic alkali and other 1 well known swelling agents,which are allowed to act upon the fabric to produce the desired tablefibre fabrics according to this invention will be the same as theireffect upon fabrics according to known processes for producing all overor pattern effects according to other prior inventions including thosedisclosed in the patents above mentioned. This invention contemplatesthe use of any and all suitable swelling agents in connection with theembossing at elevated temperature, depending upon the particular patternefiect desired. 7

The fabric may be subjected to the swelling agents by immersion orotherwise. After the modification of the fabric has taken place inconsequence of the pressing and immersion, the relief-like pressing iswholly or partially caused to disappear by a subsequent washing process,whereas the patterned effect that has resulted from the difference inthe structural changes that have taken place in the un pressed portionsof the fabric, as contrasted with the pressed portions, remains todefine the pattern effect. The pressing itself may be effected in thecustomary manner by means which operate on the principle of rollerprinting or of the fiat engraved plate.

The material that is to be treated according to this process may besubjected to the pressure either dry or moistened, in the raw,previously bleached, or otherwise previously treated state. After theproduction of the patterned effect all of the customary subsequent orimprovement processes, such as bleaching, dyeing, printing, etc., may beapplied to the fabric. By dyeing the goods be- I fore the pressedcondition of the embossed portions of the fabric has been eliminated,there are produced, in consequence of the pareffects of such general'tially changed condition of the fibres that have been altered at suchportions or spots, the well known tone-in-tone effect, i. e., patternswhich are formed in different tones of the same color merely by brighterand darker color.

The invention may be applied to all fabrics composed of naturalvegetable fibres or of artificial fibres containing cellulose such asthe artificial silks, or of mixtures of such natural or artificialfibres, or of mixtures of one or both of such fibres with animal fibres.Not only spun yarns but also any arrangement of fibres, and all forms offabrics knitted, woven and embroidered goods or the like may have thisprocess applied thereto.

It will be understood thatwhen there are present in a fabric, fibresthat are not normally susceptible to the swelling agent or agents used,these will not have their characteristic altered in the portionssubjected to pressure, from the characteristic of such fibres in theunpressed portions, in the same manner as the vegetable fibres in suchpressed portions will have their characteristic altered with respect tosuch vegetable fibres in the u'npressed portions, and this fact will addto the variety of effects that may be produced in such mixed fabrics bythe application of this invention.

According to this invention, printing by pressure at elevatedtemperature and the subsequent treatment of the goods by a swellingagent may be applied to goods which have already been subjected to theaction of one or more swelling agents. For example, one may mercerizefabric or treat it with one or more swelling agents to produce a wool,organdie or other effect in known manner, and thereafter apply theprinting of the pattern under pressure at elevated temperature toeliminate or modify the action of a subsequently applied swelling agentor agents upon such pressed portions. It is now well known that after afabric has been treated with one or more swelling agents to produce acertain desired effect, such fabric may be additionally treated with oneor more swelling agents to enhance, modify or alter the previouslyattained finish, and according to this invention the embossing with heatmay be'applied between any two treatments of the fabric with swellingagents, in which case the pressed or embossed portions will retain moreor less of the effect produced at such portions prior to the embossing,whereas the unpressed portions will acquire the effect or finishnaturally expected as a result of the subsequent swelling treatment ortreatments to which the fabric is subjected. According to this latterphase of the invention, after the treatment of the fabric with the firstswelling agent or set of swelling agents, and

the washing out of the same from the fabric, the fabric is, before orafter drying, subjected a after subjecting the to the hot pressure, andthereafter further treated with one or more swelling agents as above setforth. It will be understood that, as is known in the art, the treatmentof the fabric with the swelling agent either before or after the hotpressing, may be accomplished with or without stretching of the fabric.

W hile I have described my invention in connection with the preferredmanner ofpracticing the same, and-have cited certain particular patentsin the prior art describing certain particular swelling agents andmethods of utilizing same to produce permanent finishes upon fabrics, itwill be understood by those skilled in the art, after undera standing myinvention, that these are given merely by way of illustration, and thatthere may be various changes, modifications and substitutions madewithout departing from the spirit and scope of my invention, and I aimin the appended claims to cover all such changes and modifications ascome within the spirit of my invention.

. Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is:

1. Process for the production of durable pattern effects upon goodscomprising vegetable fibres, which comprises altering the susceptibilityof such fibres to swelling agents at certain portions of the goods bysubjecting such portions to substantial pressure at a temperature of atleast 100 C. and there goods to a swelling agent for vegetable fibres.

2. Process for the production of durable pattern etl'ects upon goodscomprising Vegetable fibres, which comprises altering the susceptibilityof such fibres to swelling agents at certain portions of the goods bysubjecting such portions to substantial pressure at a temperature of atleast 100 (3., subjecting the goods to a swelling agent for vegetablefibres, and then washing the goods to eliminate at least in part thecompressed portions due to the pressure.

3. Process for the production of durable pattern effects upon goodscomprising vegetable fibres, which comprises altering the suseeptibilityof such fibres to swelling agents at certain portions of the goods bysubjecting such portions to substantial pressure at a temperature of atleast 100 C., subjecting the goods to'a swelling agent for vegetablefibres, and thereafter dyeingthe goods.

4. Process for the production of durable pattern effects upon goodscomprising vegetable fibres, which comprises. altering thesusceptibility of such fibres to swelling agents at certain portions ofthe goods by subjecting such portions to substantial pressure at atemperature of at least 100 C., subjecting the goods to a swelling agentfor vegetable fibres,

washing the goods to eliminate atileast in.

part the compressed portions due to the pressure, andthen dyeing thegoods. 4

5. Process for the production of durable pattern effects upon goodscomprising vegetable fibres, which comprises subjecting the goods to aswelling agent for vegetable fibres and after such fibres have beenacted upon by the swelling agent altering the susceptibility of suchfibres to a subsequent treatment with a swelling agent at certainportions of the goods, by subjecting such portions to substantialpressure at a temperature of at least 100 C. and thereafter subjectingthe goods to said subsequent treatment with a swelling agent forvegetable fibres.

6. Process for the production of durable pattern elfects upon goodscomprising vegetable fibres, which comprises subjecting the goods to aswelling agent for vegetable fibres and after the swelling of the goodsand the washingout of the swelling agent, altering the susceptibility ofsuch fibres to a subsequent treatment with a swelling agent at certainportions of the goods, by subjecting such portions to substantialpressure at a temperature of at least 100 C. and thereafter subjectingthe goods to said subsequent treatment with a swelling agent forvegetable fibres.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification.

GEORGES HEBERLEIN

